This course examines the nature of both science and religion and attempts to explore the possible relationships between them. The primary purpose is to dispel the popular myth that science and religion are entrenched in a never-ending conflict. As a result, this course argues that if the limits of both science and religion are respected, then their relationship can be complementary.
Topics include: Science and Religion Categories and Foundational Principles, Definitions of Science and Religion, Science-Religion Models and Relationships, Intelligent Design and Natural Revelation, the Galileo Affair, Geology and Noah’s Flood, Evolution and Darwin’s Religious Beliefs, the Modern “Evolution” vs. “Creation” Debate, the Problem of Evil, and Interpretations of the Biblical Accounts of Origins in Genesis 1-11.
The course employs a Constructive Teaching Style in order that students can develop their personal views on the relationship between science and religion and on each of the topics listed above.
St. Joseph's College is a Catholic, undergraduate, liberal arts college on the University of Alberta campus. It is an independent institution that is affiliated with the University of Alberta.

审阅

SL

Amazing information offered, more than what I could ask for at NO cost. Well instructed course with a wealth of knowledge to attain.

SA

May 11, 2020

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Learned about religion and science and how one depends on other.

从本节课中

Evolution & Darwin’s Religious Beliefs

This week we deal with the fascinating topic of the religious beliefs of Charles Darwin. To be sure, the theory of biological evolution has significant implications for religion. Evidence is drawn from Darwin’s notebooks, diaries, letters, and books, including his most famous book outlining the theory of evolution, On the Origin of Species (1859). To the surprise of most people, the belief in Intelligent Design was a concept that consumed Darwin throughout his life. In addition, we will also discover that only a few years before his death, he firmly stated, “It seems to me absurd to doubt that a man [or woman] may be an ardent theist & an evolutionist.” In other words, Charles Darwin thought it was perfectly logical to be both a religious person and also one who accepts biological evolution. Finally, this section considers the well-known proclamation of Richard Dawkins that “Darwin made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.”

教学方

Denis Lamoureux

脚本

Hermeneutical Principle 13D, The Heavens & Ancient Astronomy Part III. A fourth ancient astronomical concept is the notion that there were ends and foundations of the heavens. For example, Jesus asserts in Matthew 13 that God will gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens. Similarly, Psalm 19:6 states, the sun rises at one end of the heavens, and makes it's circuit to the other. That is, the other end of the heavens. Please turn to page 86 in the handouts, for this diagram of the 3-Tier Universe. The idea of the ends of the heavens was logical since the end of the firmament is at the horizon. Ancient people looked up and heaven looked like an inverted bowl, with the edges of the bowl being at the ends of the heavens. The notion of the foundations of heavens was also logical motion since something supported the permanent to keep it in place. As to Samuel 22 states, the foundations of the heavens shook and trembled, God was angry. There is a similar concept in Job 26:11. The pillars of the heavens quake, aghast at God's rebuke. Turning again to our 3-tier universe diagram, we can see how the firmament is set on foundations Ancient astronomical feature number 5. From an ancient phenomenological perspective of the heavens, the sun, moon and stars are placed in the firmament. On the 4th Day of Creation in Genesis 1. God said, let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to separate the day from the night and let them serve as signs to mark the seasons and days and years. And let then be lights in the firmament of heaven to give light on earth and it was so. Continuing with the fourth day of creation, God made two great lights, the greater light govern the day which of course is the sun, and the lesser night to govern the night, which of course is the moon. He also made the stars. God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light on earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. God saw it was good and there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. Let's look at the Greek of this phrase, in the firmament. En is the proposition in, tw is the definite article the and stereomachi is a form of stereoma, which as we've seen refers to the firmament. In Hebrew the preposition ba, which means in, is attached to the noun raki'a, which of course means the firmament. So the Greek and Hebrew make it very clear that the sun, moon and stars are placed in the firmament. And from an ancient phenomenological perspective that is exactly what it looks like. The sun, the moon, and the stars appear to be embedded in the firmament. We have to add a couple comments. When we read this passage on the creation of the sun, moon and stars in Genesis 1, we have to remember that the worship of heavenly bodies was common in the ancient near east. With this being the case, Genesis 1 is very polemical, that is, in your face and has a radical message of faith. Which is, don't serve the heavens, they will serve you. And we see this very clearly on the fourth day of creation. Let them serve you to be markers of times and seasons. There's also subtle criticism, that the terms sun and moon are not used. And the creation of the stars seems like an afterthought when the passage says, and he also made the stars. Therefore, according to Genesis 1, the God of the Hebrews created the astronomical bodies, and they are not gods. In this way, this is a de-deification of nature. And in particular, Genesis 1 is blasphemy to a worshiper of the heavenly bodies. A sixth feature of ancient astronomy in a 3-tier universe is the belief in falling stars and the rolling up of the heavens at the end of time. Stars are believed to be small, and that they can fall to Earth. This is a logical notion due to the phenomenon of meteors, they are the same size and luminosity as stars and they look like they fall from the firmament. Let me offer a few examples, in Matthew 24 Jesus states that at the end of time the stars will fall from heaven and the heavenly bodies will be shaken. Similarly, Isiah 34 records, the sky will be rolled up like a scroll, all the starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the fig tree. Here's some questions. How can stars fall to Earth when only one star would blow us away completely? Answer, they are tiny, little specs. How can heavenly bodies like the sun, moon and stars be shaken? And the answer, they're attached to the firmament and if you shake the firmament, you will shake these heavenly bodies. And how can heaven be rolled up? Answer, it is like a tent canopy. From an ancient phenomenological perspective, all these ancient astronomical features make perfect sense. Our seventh and last ancient astronomical feature from an ancient phenomenological perspective is the notion that the heavens are made up of two parts, the upper heavens and the lower heavens. Caution needs to be taken with the word heaven in the Bible because it's a complex term and the context dictates the meaning. The Greek term for heaven is Ouranos. The Hebrew word for heavens is interesting in that it features the dual ending. The ending which as we've seen earlier with [FOREIGN], the term for waters, is used for things in nature occurring in pairs. The Hebrew noun for heavens is [FOREIGN] and it appears about 400 times in the old testament and only the dual and never in the singular or plural. Therefore from an ancient phenomenological perspective two heavens exist in the natural world. The upper heavens and the lower heavens. And it's important to emphasize both are real physical places. Let's consider first the upper heavens, which is God's dwelling place and a real physical location just overhead. In the bible, it is not in another dimension, as believed today by many Christians. For example, the Hebrews in Deuteronomy 26:15 cry out to God, look down from heaven, your holy dwelling place, and bless your people Israel. In other words, God's dwelling is above our heads in a 3-tier universe. And as we've noted before with Psalm 104 God stretches out the heavens like a tent and lays the beams of his upper chambers that is his dwelling on their waters. In a three tier universe God's dwelling is set on the waters of the heavenly sea. In the old testament we sometimes see the repetition for the Hebrew word for heaven [FOREIGN]. This term occurs occasionally to indicate specifically the upper heavens where God dwells. Nehemiah 9:6 is an excellent example. God made, number one, the heavens, that is the shamayim, or the lower heavens even, number two, the heavens of heavens which uses shamayim, shamayim. That is the upper heavens or the highest heavens with all their starry host, the Earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. In this verse, we clearly see the two types of heavens, the upper heavens and the lower heavens. Let's now consider the lower heavens, which has two parts. First, it includes the firmament. For example, on the second day of creation God called the firmament heavens. The lower heavens also refers to the Air Space, in Genesis 2:19 it states God formed all the birds of the heavens. And Daniel 7:13 records the son of man coming in the clouds of the heavens. To use our diagram of the 3-tier universe, the lower heavens include the firmament and the air space. Please turn to page 66 in the class handouts and let's identify the word heaven in Genesis 1:1 of the Greek Old Testament. Tawn is the definite article the and Uranon is heaven. Here is Genesis 1:1 in the Hebrew Old Testament. The definite article ha is attached to the noun shamayim, which is the word for heavens. In the ancient world, like today in science, people use metaphors in their explanations and descriptions of nature. In the Bible, the ancient Hebrews used a tent to describe physical reality with a domed canopy of heaven above and the flat floor of the earth below. Let's look at a few of these passages with the tent metaphor of the structure of the heavens. In Psalm 104, God stretches out the heaven like a tent, and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. Psalm 19 states, in the heavens he that is God has pitched a tent for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion like a champion rejoicing to run his course. And Isaiah 40 records, God sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. From an ancient phenomenological perspective, we can fully appreciate why the ancient Hebrews, compared the universe to a tent. The heaven above is like tent canopy. The earth below, is like the flat floor of a tent. And to give you one final example of the importance of reading the bible through an ancient phenomenological perspective, consider this verse that appears both in Psalm 18 and 2 Samuel 22. The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundation of the Earth laid bare at your rebuke, O lord, at the blast of breath from your nostrils. Does this verse make any sense to us as modern readers? Psalms 18, and 2 Samuel 22, make perfect sense in a three tier universe. Because there's a relationship between the sea floor and the foundations of the Earth. The two are connected together. Therefore, with God blowing away the water of the sea, the valleys of the sea, and the foundations of the Earth would be exposed. We can now bring this very long and detailed hermeneutical principle number 13 to a conclusion, the ancient phenomenological perspective of nature and the 3-tier universe. First, I think it's very clear that the Bible features a 3-tier universe, and that this was the best science of the day in the ancient near east. Second, the Bible has an ancient phenomenological perspective of the structure and operation of the universe. If we suspend our 21st century scientific ideas and look at the world through ancient eyes and an ancient mindset, we can completely appreciate why ancient people believed in a 3-tier universe. Finally, God accommodated in the biblical revelatory process and allowed the ancient Hebrews to use ancient astronomy and ancient geography. This third conclusion naturally leads to the question, does the Bible also feature an ancient biology? In our next two hermeneutical principles, we'll explore this question and its implication. End of episode.